Island



Nov. 17, 1931. l. B. MERRIMAN METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR PRINTING WARPTHREADS Filed Dec. 17. 1929 Wziiwm Patented Nov. 17, 1931 PA/TENT OFFICEISAAC B. MERRIMAN, OF BARRINGTON, RHODE 'ISLAND, ASSIGNOR TO MANV'ILLEannexes COMPANY, OF PROVIDENCE, ISLAND RHODE ISLAND, A CORPORATION OFRHODE METHQD OF AND APPARATUS FOR PRINTING WARP 'THREADS,

Application filed December 1,7, 1929. I Serial No. 414,666.

The present invention relates to a method of and apparatus for printingwarp threads.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a novel andimproved method of and apparatus for hand printing warp threads.

In the manufacture of printed fabrics, it has been found desirable todye the threads before they are woven to the fabric in order to insurethat the dye thoroughly permeates the threads and to secure fast colors.Where it is desired to print warp threads to secure some specifieddesign in the finished fabric, the threads are customarily guided over aprinting roll or some similar printing device and are then wound on awarp beam, beingmaintained at all times in the same parallelrelationship, so that the threads as they are unwound from the warp beamduring the weaving operation on the loom will-be positioned withrelation to each other to preserve the design intact in the finishedfabric. Commercially successful warp printing machines now in useordinarily are-provided with a continuously rotating printing roll overwhich the warp threads are carried and which produce a recurring designon the threads corresponding in length to the circumference of the roll.The desi ns produced on machines of this type are obviously limited insize by practical considerations in the construction of the roll and arenot well adapted for the production of intricate varicolored designssuch as are ordinarily produced by hand block printing.

The principal feature of the present invention consists in the methodherein disclosed of printing warp threads which comprises placing thethreads under a tension and in aligned relationship to each other acrossa printing table, printing a deslgn on the threads which held in thisposition, and thereafter winding the printed portion of the threads ontoa warp beam, while maintaining unchanged the relative positions of thethreads.

A further feature of the present invention consists in the provision ofmeans for positioning the warp threads on a printing table inpredetermined position so that the warp maybe printed by hand withdesigns which may be varied at will and may be made of any desired size.g

The'several features of the invention consist also in the severalstepsof the method herein disclosed and in the combinations and arrangementof parts hereinafter described and claimed which, together with theadvantages to be obtained thereby, will be readily understood by oneskilled in the art from the following description taken in connectionwith the accompanyingdrawings in which F ig. 1 is a plan View of theprintng table, guiding rolls and comb for positioning the warp threadsfor the hand printing operation; Figais a view in side elevation of theparts shown in' Fi'g. 1 vwith aportion of the rail broken away toshowm'ore clearly the construction of the bed of the printing table;Fig; 3 is a sectional View taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1; and Fig. 4 isa side elevation on reduced scale showing in a somewhat diagrammaticform the complete apparatus for printing, drying and winding the warpthreads on a warp beam, the warp threads as shown in this view beingraised ofi'the table preparatory to windlng these threads through thedrier onto the warp beam.

In carrying out the present invention, a method and apparatus forprinting warp threads particularly adapted for use in the production ofcomparatively large fabrics such as'bedsprea ds has been devised whichmakes it possibleto print designs of any variety or size on warp threadsand to handle the threads rapidly andeificiently in such a manner as topermit the design to be woven intact in the finished fabric. To thisend,

the applicant has found it possible to lay the warp threads out onelarge printing table and to hold them in parallel relationship undertension in the relative positions which they are to occupy in thefinished fabric so that the warp threads may be printed easily andaccurately by hand with designs which may be of any shape or size andmay readily be changed as it is found expeditious to do so. The printingtable disclosed may be made wide enough to accommodate fabric of anywidth and is preferably made long enough to permit the printing ofseveral successive designs on the fabric at one time. In order toprevent rolling or misplacing 0f the warp threads and to hold them inparallel relationship, they are passed through a comb at each end of thetable. The threads are drawn off of a beam and laid along the printingtable in the relative positions which they are to occupy in the finishedfabric. After the printing operation, they are passed through a drierand are finally wound onto a warp beam ready for the loo-m. The threadsare held at all times under a sufficient tension on the table tomaintain their parallel relationship by means of a friction brake on thebeam from, which the threads are drawn and a corresponding tensioningdevice at the other end of the table.

As herein disclosed, the printing of the warp threads is done by meansof printing frames or screens which are carefully registered atdesignated points on the table so that a varying design may be continuedfor any distance desired along the warp and different colors may be usedin the composition of the design.

To prevent running of the colors or otherwise injuring the Warp when thefreshly printed portion of the warp threads are drawn off the printingtable, a number of rollers are inserted under the warp to raise thethreads out of contact with the table and may either be permitted torotate or are carried along with the fabric to reduce the frictionalcontacts with the wet threads to aminimum.

i The apparatus herein disclosed for carrying out the method of thepresent invention comprises a printing table 6 ,onto which the warpthreads are drawn in predetermined parallel relationship and which isprovided at each end with a comb 8 to maintain the threads at all timesparallel with each other and to prevent them from rolling or becomingdisarranged as they are drawn into position on the table. In orderfurther to secure the threads in their relative positions while they arebeing moved along the relatively long table or through the dryingapparatus, strips of gum paper may be pasted across the warp threads.The warp threads are taken from a beam 10 situated at the right hand endof the table as shown in the drawings, passed through the comb 8 acrossthe table 6,

through a similar comb 8 on the left hand end of the table, over theidler roll 12, through the drying apparatus generally indicated at 14,over the tensioning roll 16, and from there through a comb 18 onto theWarp beam 20. The beam 10 is provided at one end with a brake drum 22over which extends a brake band 24 secured atone end to the floor bymeans of a bracket 26, an d at its other end is provided with a weight28 to provide a suitable tension for the warp threads on the table.During the printing operation, the warp threads are firmly clamped downon the printing table by means of a clamping bar 42 at a point adjacentto the idler roll 12 which, as will vbe evident from an inspection ofthe drawings, is positioned at a level considerably above the bed of theprinting table. The table bed on which the warp threads are printedcomprises a metal plate on which is carried a rubber covered felt pad30. In order to prevent any'running of the colors, a blotting cloth isstretched over the print- ,ing bed, being unwound as needed from a roll82 at the right hand end of the bed, as shown in the drawings, and beingwound When it is found necessary to replace the blot ting surface with afresh piece of cloth onto asimilar roll 34 supported at the left handend of the bed.

The design is printed on the fabric b3 means of printing frames of anyordinary construction as shown at 86, Figs. 1 and 2, which carrytrunnions 38 at each end which are adapted to fit in corresponding slots40 at each side of the printing table so that the different colors inthe design may be accurately superimposed upon each other. WVith thisarrangement of the apparatus, it will be seen that by the use ofappropriate screens designs of any description and of any size extendinglengthwise of the warp threads may be produced, and that these designsmay be varied at will as the occasion requires.

Afterthe design has been printed on the portion of the warp threads onthe printing table, the warp beam 20 is rotated to cause the printedportion of the warp to be passed through the drier 14 and finally woundon the warp beam 20. Inorder to prevent any damage to the warp threadsor running of the colors by dragging the threads over the wet blotter onthe table, a series of rollers indicated at 44 are passed underneath thewarp to lift the threads out of contact with the table. At the sametime, the clamp 42 is removed so that the threads are permitted to ridedirectly from the rollers 44 to the idler roll 12, as shown in Fig. 4.As the warp is Wound up on the warp beam, the rollers 44 may either berotated or carried along with the fabric to reduce the frictionalcontact with the wet threads to a minimum.

With the method and apparatus for hand printing warp threads abovedescribed, the applicant has been able to achieve a new result in theproduction of print fabrics of comparatively large size such, forinstance, as bedspreads which are preferably printed with a single largedesign extending over the whole area of the fabric. The advantages ofthe present construction will be the more readily appreciated by acomparison of the present apparatus and method with the commercialautomatic machines for handling and printing the warp threads today inuse which, as above pointed out, can be utilized only to print arecurring design which is limited both in variety and size by practicalconsiderations in the construction of the printing roll, where as withthe present apparatus, there are substantially no limits to the widthand length of the designs which may be printed on the warp threads.

The method and apparatus for hand printing warp threads herein disclosedas embodying the several features of the present invention combines theadvantages of a semiautomatic method for the rapid and efficienthandling of the warp threads with the further advantages of blockprinting by hand, in permitting an almost infinite variation in both theextent and the nature of the desi ns which may be changed at will bysubstituting a new set of screens.

The invention having been described, what is claimed is:

1. A method of printing warp threads which comprises placing the threadsin aligned relationship to each other across a printing table,successively placing a series of printing blocks on the threads whileheld on the table in successive predetermined positions along the tableto print a series of designs on the threads, and thereafter winding theprinted portion of the threads onto a warp beam while maintainingunchanged the relative positions of the threads.

2. A method of printing warp threads which comprises placing the threadsin aligned relationship to each other across a printing table, blockprinting a series of designs on the threads by means of printing blocksregistered successively at each of sev eral points along the tableadvancing the threads to permit the printing of the successive portionsof the threads on the table, passing the printed threads through adrier, and

winding the printed portion of the threads onto a warp beam whilemaintaining unchanged the relative positions of the threads.

3. A method of printing warp threads which comprises placing the threadsin aligned relationship to each other across the printing table,printing a design on the threads, raising the threads out of contactwith the table, and advancing the threads held out of contact with thetable to wind them onto a warp, beam While maintaining unchanged therelative positions of the threads.

4. A method of printing warp threads warp beam while maintainingunchanged the relative positions of the threads.

5. A machine for printing warp threads having, in combination, aprinting table, a series of supports on the table arranged to receiveand register printing blocks at a pinrality of predetermined pointsalong the.

table, an unrolling stand from which the Warp threads are drawn, a combsituated at each end of the table to secure a proper alignment of thethreads on the table, a warp beam situated at the end of the tableopposite the unrolling stand, and a drier for the threads interposedbetween the warp beam and the printing table.

6. A machine for printing warp threads having, in combination, aprinting table, an unrolling stand from which the warp threads aredrawn, a comb situated at each end of the table to secure a properalign-ment of the threads on the table, supporting elements adapted toraise the printed threads off the table, and a warp beam situated at theopposite end of the table onto which the printed threads are rolledwhile maintaining unchanged the relative positions of the threads.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ISAAC B. MERRIMAN.

